This invention relates to a solid paste dispenser and to a slider for holding a stick of solid paste for use with such solid paste dispenser.
Dispensers for feeding solid paste are described in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 59080/1999, Japanese Patent Publication No. 5502/1996 and Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 2,534,943.
They are such that a tail plug 02 fitted at one end of a cylindrical body 01 is rotatable for rotating a screw rod 03 forming an integral part of the tail plug 02 in the cylindrical body 01 and thereby raise and lower a slider 05 in the cylindrical body 01 by virtue of its threaded engagement with the screw rod 03 and its guidance by guide ridges 04 formed on the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical body 01 along its longitudinal axis, the slider 05 holding a solid paste 06 at its rear end so that the solid paste 06 may have its front end free to protrude from the cylindrical body 01 and retract thereinto, as shown by a longitudinal sectional view in FIG. 8.
The slider 05 has a cylindrical shape with a bottom having a through hole in which the screw rod 03 is threadedly engaged.
The slider 05 as described above has, however, the following problems:                a) As the solid paste 06 in the form of a stick is simply fitted at one end in the bottomed cylindrical slider 05, the solid paste 06 is likely to come off the slider 05 if, for example, its distal end sticks to a surface to be coated, and is thereby dragged during its use.        b) The solid paste 06 is usually fitted in the bottomed cylindrical slider 05 along its rear end portion occupying about 15% of its overall length, and the solid paste portion fitted therein cannot be used effectively, but is wasted.        
In order to solve the above problems, I, the inventor of this invention has previously proposed a new slider in Japanese Patent Application No. 149058/1999 (Laid-Open No. 2000-33519).
The slider according to the prior application as mentioned above is a slider 07 having a plate member 07a having a cylindrical central portion 07b through which a screw rod 03 will extend, and an engaging protrusion or protrusions 07c projecting outwardly from its periphery as its integral parts, as a form of its embodiment is shown by a perspective view in FIG. 9 and by the longitudinal sectional view taken along the line X—X of FIG. 9 in FIG. 10.
The use of the slider 07 makes it possible to prevent the coming off of solid paste as encountered with the traditional bottomed cylindrical slider 05.
When liquid paste is solidified into a stick of solid paste and held by the slider 07, it is solidified between the plate member 07a of the slider 07 and an engaging protrusion 07c and between the engaging protrusions 07c, so that the stick of solid paste may be engaged by the outwardly projecting engaging protrusions 07c and not come off the slider 07, even if a force tending to cause the solid paste to come off the slider 07 may act upon it longitudinally.
Moreover, the slider 07 according to the prior application does not have any cylindrical portion surrounding it as in the known slider 05, but the solid paste is exposed in its end portion surrounding the slider 07, so that the end portion of the solid paste can be used effectively for sticking purposes until the outer edges of the engaging protrusions 07c are exposed from the solid paste.
FIG. 11 is a longitudinal sectional view showing a solid paste dispenser 08 including the slider 07 shown in FIG. 9, and used with solid paste 09.
Even if the solid paste 09 may remain only in the vicinity of the slider 07 as a result of use, the outer peripheral portion 09a of the solid paste 09 pressed against a paper or like surface 010 can be used effectively for sticking purposes.
The slider 07 has, however, the following problems:                (1) The solid paste 09 remaining inwardly of the outer edges of the engaging protrusions 07c of the slider 07 is of no use for sticking purposes, since the outer edges of the engaging protrusions 07c abut on the paper or like surface 010.        (2) It is likely that the outer edges of the engaging protrusions 07c may be rubbed against the paper or like surface 010 and damage it.        